Author to speak about Deborah Sampson-based novel, 'Revolutionary'

Tuesday

May 6, 2014 at 12:01 AM

MIDDLEBORO — First-time novelist Alex Myers will be the guest of the Middleborough Historical Association on Saturday, May 10, and will speak about one of the town's own - Deborah Sampson. The young woman, who disguised herself as a man and joined the continental army in 1782, is the subject of Mr. Meyers' new book, "Revolutionary." Through the genre of historical fiction, Mr. Myers brings Deborah Sampson alive during her days in Middleboro and her time serving in the Fourth Massachusetts Regiment. Mr. Myers will be speaking at the Middleboro Public Library at 1 p.m.

MIDDLEBORO — First-time novelist Alex Myers will be the guest of the Middleborough Historical Association on Saturday, May 10, and will speak about one of the town's own - Deborah Sampson. The young woman, who disguised herself as a man and joined the continental army in 1782, is the subject of Mr. Meyers' new book, "Revolutionary." Through the genre of historical fiction, Mr. Myers brings Deborah Sampson alive during her days in Middleboro and her time serving in the Fourth Massachusetts Regiment. Mr. Myers will be speaking at the Middleboro Public Library at 1 p.m.

In 1782, during the final clashes of the Revolutionary War, a valiant and beloved soldier was, secretly, a woman. When Deborah Sampson, living in Middleboro at the time, disguised herself as a man and joined the Continental Army, she wasn't just fighting for America's independence — she was fighting for her own. "Revolutionary," Mr. Myers' richly imagined and meticulously researched debut novel, brings the true story of eborah's struggle against a rigid colonial society back to life — and with it, the courage, hope, fear and heartbreak that shaped her journey through a country's violent birth.

After years as an indentured servant, chafing under the oppressive norms of colonial America, Deborah couldn't contain her discontent any longer. When a sudden crisis forced her hand, she decided to finally make her escape. Embracing the peril and promise of the unknown, she cut her hair, bound her chest and, stealing clothes from a neighbor, rechristened herself Robert Shurtliff. It was a desperate, dangerous and complicated deception, and became only more so when she enlisted in the Continental Army.

What followed was an inspiring, one-of-a-kind journey through an America torn apart by war: brutal winters and battlefields, the trauma of combat and the cruelty of betrayal, the joy of true love and the tragedy of heartbreak. Mr. Myers, himself, a descendant of Sampson, takes full advantage of this real-life heroin's unique voice to celebrate the struggles for freedom.

The New York Times writes, "This is a bona fide and unforgettable Revolutionary War novel"¦[An] approachable, imaginative novel, a tale of muskets and masquerade, of marches and mutiny, that is also as an evocative portrayal of life in the Continental Army"¦Remarkable."

Mr. Myers, a writer and teacher, was born and grew up in Paris, Maine. He was raised as a girl (Alice) and left Maine to attend boarding school at Phillips Exeter Academy. While attending Exeter, he came out as transgender. After attending three years as a woman, he returned for his senior year as a man, the first transgender student in the history of the school. He earned a bachelor's degree at Harvard University where he also was the first openly transgender student, working to change the university's nondiscrimination clause to include gender identity. After receiving a master's degree from Brown University, Mr. Myers pursued a career as a secondary school English teacher. He also completed a master's of fine arts in fiction writing at the Vermont College of Fine Arts, where he began his work on "Revolutionary." He lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife and two cats.